Job Type: Voluntary, Part time (Flexible Working, 2 days a week)
Location: Brixton, London
Travel expenses to and from the office will be reimbursed.
The current English language provision for refugees in the UK remains underfunded and difficult to access. Without access to structured language tuition, refugees find themselves isolated, unable to advocate for themselves or begin to integrate into the UK. A study released during 2017 found that several providers had waiting lists of up to two years for English lessons and there was a lack in full-time provision resulting in people failing to successfully learn English. Providers said the situation was getting worse, citing government cuts to language provision as the main reason.
RefuAid’s Language: A Gateway Programme
RefuAid provides scholarship places at private language schools throughout the UK for people who have been granted asylum to improve English and take English language exams. These exams provide the necessary qualification to enter a university or a profession in the UK. We support the students in a caseworker capacity throughout the duration of their course.
Along with school places, we have volunteer tutors who support our students. The coordinator will be required to assess applications and recruit new volunteer teachers, as well as managing their files on the database, and connecting volunteer teachers with the right students. The coordinator will be liaising and working closely with the language team members.
Key Responsibilities:
- Interviewing and onboarding volunteer tutors and matching them with suitable students.
- Working towards ensuring all available teachers are supported.
- Ensuring that all information is recorded accurately and that database remains up to date.
- Ensuring volunteer packs are up to date.
- Generating reports for the Programme Lead and updates for the caseworkers.
- Managing communication among volunteers in order to share news, progress and updates.
- Promoting a positive and supportive culture by recognising volunteer efforts and assisting volunteers with their own endeavours.
- Creating and distributing information regarding volunteer policies and procedures.
Skills, Experience and Attributes:
- Experience of teaching English as a foreign language.
- Understanding of challenges associated with teaching learners from refugee backgrounds.
- Excellent administrative and time management skills.
- Excellent communication skills on the telephone, in writing and in person.
- Commitment to, understanding and sensitive communication of our work and values.
- A high standard of spoken and written English.
- Excellent numeracy.
- Meticulous; high degree of accuracy and attention to detail.
- Excellent IT skills; specifically, Microsoft Office but additional software programs would be an advantage.
- Interest in the importance of long-term solutions in refugee-hosting communities, specifically in breaking down the language barrier.
- Enthusiastic and positive attitude; flexible and adaptable.
To apply, please forward your CV to Mohib Ullah (mohib@refuaid.org).